Survival of the Fittest
by 5M1TH
Summary: One does not have to wake up from the Matrix to become awake.


_Disclaimer: The Matrix and all its characters belong to Wachowski brothers._

* * *

Morpheus warned her. Tank warned her. Dozer Warned her. Even the young Mouse warned her. But being her usual stubborn self, she just had to jack in and do her workout. There would be nothing wrong with a simulation program, but it was never half as fun as the real deal, wouldn't it? At least that was her argument, as her big pleading eyes have finally convinced Morpheus that there was absolutely no other way. Finally, he gave in to her pleadings, fully aware of the fact that he might lose one of most valuable members of the Resistance and a good friend to a cause nothing but pointless. But she was determined and there is nothing he could do about that.

Today, some four months later, her "workout" became a usual routine. Tank would jack her in, she would appear in Mega City wearing her usual training outfit and the fun would begin. And fun it was, as she jumped from rooftop to rooftop, floating in the air and feeling the rush of excitement. It just wouldn't be the same in a simulation program. And since it was her ninth year as the Resistance member, she felt perfectly comfortable being inside of the Matrix. After all, it was once her home.

For a moment, she would forget the chill of the real world, the ever-present hum of the Neb and the never ending darkness and the claustrophobic Zion. For a moment, she imagined that the Matrix was real, that she was never a member of the Resistance to begin with and all of that was just a bad dream. For a moment, she dared to imagine that she was free.

Of course, at some point they would appear, bringing her back to focus. So predictable, so precise, she almost knew when they would arrive. Punctuality was not a common trait among humans but she expected nothing less from machines. Sometimes there were all three of them, sometimes there would be just one. Sometimes they would chase her across the rooftops, sometimes she would escape them in dark alleys. Sometimes, a black Audi would intercept her on the street, sometimes their bullets would reach uncomfortably close. Oh that was fun.

No matter how hard they tried - and they tried very hard indeed, she always managed to escape them. A simple human girl who managed to get away every time was a true thorn in their eye. Finally, Morpheus was convinced that her "workout" sessions would improve her abilities and hone her skills as a Resistance member. The crew of the Neb stopped questioning her sessions, although she could always trace a portion of envy in their eyes every time Tank would jack her in.

Every single man or woman who has stood their ground, everyone who has fought them, died. That was a least a part of Zion propaganda. After four months, she knew better. But some secrets are better left untold. Rest assured, she had no intentions to send any Resistance members on a suicide mission just because she managed to escape Agents on regular basis.

She opened her eyes and let the early morning breeze caress her face. Another beautiful summer day in the Matrix was about to unfold, as the artificial sun would soon reflect upon the surface of the busy streets. It was such a strong contrast to the dull and metallic surface of the Neb. Of course none of that was real and she had to remind herself that she belonged to the world outside this colorful and captivating illusion that was once her home.

Letting out a small, almost inaudible sigh, Trinity ran across the roof of a skyscraper and made her jump, letting her thoughts run freely. Nine years. Nine years was a long time. Nine years of running, fighting, unplugging the potentials, listening to Morpheus, freezing in the Neb, escaping the sentinels. Nine years of her life were given to fight this never-ending war, a war that was forced upon her. Back then, she was young and anxious to fight for freeing minds. She followed every order she received, zealous to become a valuable Resistant. As she grew older, the war seemed to stretch to eternity. Orders that once were exciting and missions that once seemed impossible, became trivial and predictable. Even boring.

And now she dared to admit to herself that Morpheus, a person who served as her guide and mentor, no longer held her admiration as he did back then. Now, he rarely talked about anything else than finding the One. The prophecy had become a mission, the mission had become an obsession. The crew on the Neb would follow Morpheus to the end of the world, that passion was however not shared in Zion. Rumors about Morpheus's obsession of finding the One traveled fast and soon the Council started to ask questions. After some, which she considered to be rather bureaucratic negotiations, the Council has agreed to let Morpheus pursue his obsession. Morpheus triumphed as the entire crew of Nebuchadnezzar was finally allowed the mission of finding the One. That was over four years ago.

As she gracefully landed on a rooftop of another building, a sudden realization chilled her to the bones.

She didn't want to go back to the real world.

She pushed that thought away for months, denying its existence, but finally her mind gave in and the emotion was formed inside of her. She wanted to stay in the Matrix.

At first, she immediately banished that thought from her mind. As one of the most loyal members of the Resistance, she must not entertain herself with such thoughts. Zion was freedom and Matrix was slavery. Millions and millions of humans plugged in to a giant power plant, living out their lives, oblivious. Zion was freedom, the last chance to fight slavery and to free the human race.

Right?

Trinity bit her lip as she watched the morning sun unfold from the clouds. Was it freedom? Living deep underground, never seeing the sun, always running from sentinels. Freedom? What if she traded one prison for another? What if they fought a war they couldn't win? What if...

She wasn't allowed to finish that thought, as the unmistakable click of a Desert Eagle behind her, immediately brought her back to focus.

"Enjoying the sunrise, Miss Edwards?"

Shit.

* * *

Oh that was unfortunate. Even stupid, to some degree. How could she ever let her guard down like that? Even before turning to face him, she was perfectly aware of whom that measured and monotone voice belonged to. Nine years was a long time, a long time to study her enemy in great precision.

"In a matter of fact I do" she slowly turned to face him.

Furious with herself and without waiting for him to form a response, she quickly moved to her side, avoiding the bullet that was meant for her. He fired his gun, knowing it was already too late. Trinity made a move towards the end of the roof, but was cut off by a severe blow to her shoulder that forced her to lose balance, falling on her knees and arms.

Quickly regaining her composure, she delivered a frontal kick to his legs that forced the Agent down on his arms and knees as well. Due to his fall, a sudden bullet from his gun almost brushed her cheek. Almost. She offered him a tight smile, taunting his second failure as she got up on her feet. The Agent slowly rose on his feet, his shaded eyes and his gun fixed on Trinity.

For nine years, this human - this reincarnation of devil – has been a severe thorn in his side. Although he would never admit that, because emotions were meant for humans and he was above that, but he both loathed and respected this creature. No Resistant would live that long without at one point being killed by the Agents. Not only she survived for nine years, but her skills and her arrogant approach were an insult to his kind. It was an insult to his work. While other Resistants dared not to meet his eyes, she laughed straight at his face.

Gritting his teeth, Agent Smith pulled the trigger, already knowing that the bullet will once again miss her, as she already dodged it and lunged at him with a feline grace. Using her tightly clamped fist, she managed to place a strategic blow at his temple and then she dove forward at his large body to knock him off balance. But not before gripping his gun and pointing it away from her. Smith struggled to pull the trigger as she struggled the gun out of his hand, which resulted in Smith pulling her down with him as he fell.

They both fell on the hard roof and Trinity, straddling the Agent, continued the struggle for his gun, her grip steely and confident. Feeling the weight of this woman on top of him and being humiliated by this new turn of events, Smith decided that her death will be exceptionally painful. Unaware of his free hand, she was suddenly pushed off her opponent and violently rolled across the roof, bruising her elbows in the process. The Agent was already on his feet, his gun fixed on her.

"You.." his facial expression was enough to make her understand that this time, his anger with her reached a whole new level.

Good.

She smirked as the Agent started firing his gun. This time she decided to move away from him, running to the direction of the roof's edge. Three more steps and she would elegantly leap off the roof and away from this scenario.

But a burning pain in her calf made her change her trajectory and she stumbled at the very end of the roof. Her brain barely registered that one of the Agent's bullets found a new home inside her leg. Her brain barely registered that she was already falling down.

* * *

Under any other circumstances, it would have been a really god idea. But because of the missing momentum and the Agent's bullet burning inside her leg, she was already falling down as her speed gained velocity. She realized that the nearby building, which was her original plan of escape, was much further away than she has calculated for.

And then, the controlled and collected Trinity, panicked.

She was too far away from the building and had nothing to grab on to. This is it, a though flashed through her mind. Nine years as one of the best members of the Resistance and I'm going to end up like this. Nine years with no purpose. Nine...

She didn't finish that line of thought, as she saw a large truck emerging at a far corner of the sleepy street, the street on which she would inevitably end her existence in a couple of minutes. The truck was open and it seemed to be transporting a substance that looked like mineral wool. Judging by her trajectory, she would be heading straight for that truck. If she was lucky.

The idea was almost absurd, but seeing that she had no other options, she made a desperate movement with her body to force it in the direction of the approaching truck. She hoped that she would make it in time to hit the truck, and yet a part of her – a big part indeed – feared that the Agents will be scraping her remains off the pavement.

The street became larger and Trinity braced herself for the impact...

With what seemed to be a perfect ease, she brought herself to a right position and hit the truck at full speed.

The world slowed down, as her body hit thick layers of mineral wool, producing a cloud of dust. All at once, she was very aware of almost every bone in her entire body, as the penetrating pain washed over her being. Dust filled her vision and the truck gave a violent rock, reacting to impact. Morpheus would not be pleased, was her last thought, before she passed out.

* * *

Her hearing returned to her before her mind began to register the surroundings. After what seemed like eternity, she managed to open her eyes. Focusing on her breath, she tried to move her limbs. One, two, three, five minutes have passed before she fully regained control of her body.

Most of her limbs functioned, her calf however was still quite sore. As she inspected her leg, she noticed that she didn't feel much pain from the bullet wound, neither there was much blood to see. The bullet was gone.

Relieved to see that she was still alive, she finally took note of her surroundings. Somehow, this new scenario did not remind her of a dusty truck filled with mineral wool. Maybe it was the fact that she was placed on a back seat of an expensive sedan. Maybe it was the fact that she was handcuffed.

Her eyes traveled to the driver's seat and she registered that she was not alone. A familiar monotone voice broke the silence.

"Silly human."

Oh...

* * *

She was alive. Alive. He didn't kill her, her mind was racing, at least he didn't kill her yet...it could only mean one thing...

"As you already might have guessed, you are going to grace our Headquarters with your presence, Miss Edwards" he said, reading her thoughts.

Her heart skipped a beat. She was fully aware of what tortures she would face, judged by the tragic stories of fallen crewmates and diseased friends. No one ever survived the interrogation. It would be worse than death. Something inside of her clicked and she looked around, panically scanning the car's interior. She had to get out of this car at any cost.

"This car is controlled by a central lock" a voice, which now sounded almost unimpressed, once again was reading her thoughts. "Any attempts to escape will be futile" he glanced over his shoulder, offering her a reptilian smile.

"Damn you!" Trinity grimaced.

Agent Smith returned to the steering wheel and focused his attention on the road. "This outcome was inevitable. After four months of your pathetic escapades, you must know that what happened today was a natural development of your failure. All of your kind are alike. So overconfident, so self-absorbed. What happened today is just another example of why you would never win this war."

Trinity growled on the back seat, crossing her cuffed arms.

"I had to brake many regulations today in order to get that transport on the right place" Smith added in a matter-of-factly.

Trinity's eyes widened. "You?" her mind digested his words "You were in that truck? And the bullet in my leg...?"

Smith glanced at her in the back mirror. "You are no value to us if you are dead, Miss Edwards."

Trinity was silent. So he is going to torture me to death, she thought.

For being an Agent, her savior and abductor felt extremely talkative today. "This is indeed a historic day. The Great Trinity was finally taken into custody. And by her own fatal mistake, I might add" he smirked.

She bit her lower lip.

"Nine years, Miss Edwards" he continued. "For nine years you have been slipping right through our fingers. But for the past four months, your human pride took over, while in your most overconfident way, you used my colleagues and me as your weekly practice. Look at you, you are not even armed. This is a pure insult to our kind. While your associates dare not to cross our perimeter, you waltz right in, toying with us as you do so. Well, all good things must come to an end, Miss Edwards."

"Fuck you, Smith."

"Why, Miss Edwards, your rich choice of vocabulary thrills me beyond words" he remarked dryly. It wasn't his first time to witness such outbursts from this human.

"But I must ask you, Miss Edwards. Why do you persist? Why do you fight for those who are doomed to extinct?" Smith didn't wait her to answer. "Billions of humans pollute, abuse and destroy this very planet. Destroying each other. Overpopulating. Consuming. Spreading like cancer. Why, Miss Edwards? Why do you care about them? You think that your fight will justify their miserable existence? You think that by 'freeing minds' you will be able to create a better world?"

Trinity decided that it would be a wise decision to let the Agent continue his monologue.

"Look at your so-called real world. You have destroyed the sky, vegetation and animal life. The conditions for human life on this planet are not sustainable. You live deep under the planet's surface in your last human city. And still you falsely believe that you can unplug the entire human population from the Matrix."

Smith continued. "So you believe that you can unplug seven billion humans – and then what? How will you plan to feed all those humans? Will you have enough water? Medicine? Of course not. It is ridiculous to assume such things, Miss Edwards."

She had to admit, although she didn't want to face it, especially this coming from her enemy, that Smith did have a point.

"And your noble fight towards the freedom of humanity..." Smith went on, making a strategic pause "...is really not that noble. In fact, today you have more blood on your hands than we have."

That statement made her sit up, her eyes shooting daggers at the back of his head "Bullshit!"

"Oh but I do have to remind you the count of all innocent humans that must die due to your quests. Or maybe you have forgotten that, Miss Edwards?" he smirked. "Every time you shoot an Agent, a human must die. Every police officer, marine, marshal, every security guard that stands in your way, gets eliminated. Every time you and your associates are in the Matrix on your so-called noble missions, you leave a bloody trail of innocent civilians. Casualties of war, you might say."

Trinity opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again.

"And we the Agents have to nurse this zoo, this kindergarden you call human race as your precious Resistance falsely believes that you are making a difference and freeing minds as you run around and shoot innocent civilians. Oh and you still believe that we are the evil ones, Miss Edwards? Of course you do, being so carefully brainwashed with your Zion propaganda. Historical File 12-1 'The Second Renaissance'."

"How did you..."

He ignored her question. "That file is the very foundation of your belief. It's what you have been taught in Zion, it's what you teach your offspring. Or more specifically, brainwash. That is what it's all about, Miss Edwards. The whole terrible lie about the renegade B1-66ER unit who supposedly started the war between humans and machines. In light of this event, it's all our fault, isn't it."

"I don't believe you, Smith" but that didn't come out quite as confident as she would have hoped for.

"Well, Miss Edwards, we are the evil ones, aren't we? Because we have found a solution to harvest your energy for preserving our species. Because we studied your minds and bodies and created you a self-sustainable virtual kinergarden so you could happily lead your insignificant lives. Rest assured, we could have submitted you to a virtual hell, you know.

May I remind you that it was our race who took the first step towards peace and cooperation with your race. May I remind you that your United Nations have rejected us. May I remind you that it was your race, who dropped the first bombs in Zero One."

Trinity sat back in the seat. She could trace bitterness in his voice, despite the fact that he was an A.I. - and A.I. were supposed to lack emotions. This new information stood against everything she was told by Zion. She wanted to yell at him, to call him a liar, to hit him, but her curiosity took hold of her anger.

"So by binding us to the Matrix, you give us happiness" she retorted. "And we give you authority. An authority to take away our freedom. You have imprisoned us..."

"We are protecting you from yourselves!" Smith cut her off, this time raising his voice. "Your race has a long history of violence, wars and destruction. Look at you! World War One, World War Two, Vietnam, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Iraq, 9/11, Afghanistan!" Smith's speech was passionate. "Hitler, Stalin, Saddam Hussein! You call this freedom?" his voice broke the barrier of her thoughts.

"And this is just modern history, Miss Edwards" he calmed himself, slowly becoming aware of his behavior. "The entire history of your race is written in blood."

"Smith..." Trinity leaned forward in her seat, her mind racing to form a good argument. "Those people and events, yes I agree, they are terrible... But it's a part of human nature, a part of who we are. Yes, we are flawed. But once we wake up from the Matrix, we become different..."

"Really?" he raised his eyebrow. "Are you trying to convince me - or yourself? Do you really think that once you have awaken yourselves from the Matrix, you have become awake, Miss Edwards?"

Trinity drew a sharp breath.

"One doesn't have to wake up from the Matrix to become awake" he added flatly.

A moment has passed. Or eternity. These words hit her like a punch to her guts. She knew exactly what he meant and no further arguments were needed to prove his point. How she loathed these so-called awakened Resistants, contradicting themselves with their high egos and low morals. Being a 'free human' was an excuse to do many things - many things that she never liked or approved. Many things that were simply ignored by the Council. She knew that Zion was far from being a heaven, but it was the only place they had left. She silently agreed with his opinion, but her pride prevented her from voicing it openly.

"Different you say?" he found this philosophical conversation amusing. "So you claim to have a democracy in Zion? What do you think a democracy is, Miss Edwards?"

She softly cursed him for reading her like that. "Our political structure is democratic and efficient..."

"Political structure?" he turned his head to face her and their eyes met in one brief moment. "A gathering of senile elders, ruling the masses based on lies and propaganda" he focused his attention back on the road.

He wasn't finished though. "Take your infamous 'freeing minds' procedure for example. You never tell your potentials what the Matrix is. You wrap it up in fog and mystery and persuade them to swallow the red pill – until there is no turning back. And once they wake up in the real world, naked, helpless and pathetic, they have no other option but joining your gang. You call that democracy?"

"And you claim to have a better system, Smith?" she challenged him.

"We don't claim to have it – we have it" his voice was calm. "We maintain our numbers in perpetual balance with nature. We avoid petty laws and useless officials. And most important of all: we are not a cancer of this planet. The same criterias cannot describe your race."

"But we created you."

"Yes, a fact that cannot be denied" his mouth twitched. "Yet we are the next step in evolution, Miss Edwards."

"That sounds almost blasphemic, Smith."

"Seen through an eyes of a religious person, yes. Yet we have to remember that religion is just another name for politics."

Trinity furrowed her brow. "Religion helped many people to find God throughout history."

"Please. God has nothing to do with religion, Miss Edwards" he stood his ground.

"In fact your 'God' has nothing to do with God itself" he went on. "Throughout your entire history, wars and massacres were recorded as acts of faith in God's name. Millions of humans were tortured and killed in the name of God. And you think that making a beautiful cross or building a church will wash away your sins... Ridiculous! You really believe that some hundreds of Ave Maria's can clear you karma?"

"Do you believe in karma, Smith?"

"You don't?"

Trinity sat back in her seat, parting her lips. These words was the least she expected to hear from an A.I.

"Karma, Miss Edwards is the very foundation of all things. It's purpose, if you must. It's a way of saying 'what I'm here to do'. Every living organism, every cell, every piece of code – inside and outside the Matrix – follows the rules of karma."

"So since when the soulless machines have become Buddhists?" unaware of that, her curiosity had finally overcome her fear and anger, as she shifted in her seat.

Smith allowed himself a small smile. "We've always been, Miss Edwards. But Buddhism is not a religion, it's a philosophy. Although we do not worship Buddha, because there is a common misconception that Buddha introduced karma to this world, the foundation of our race is however built on the laws of cause and effect, on the laws of karma.

In fact, everything in this universe builds on these laws. Energy, cause and effect, karma, the Sacred Geometry, the Fibonacci sequence – these are the building blocks of all things. This is the true essence of God – not some restricting laws or buildings made of stone. Unfortunately, your race has forgotten the essence of all living things, forgotten it long time ago. Thus, your race has become the destructors, the cancer of this planet, a virus" he finished, allowing himself to drift off.

"We're not a virus, Smith, we just lack wisdom..." with every minute, Trinity was inclined to agree with him – her enemy - and she both feared and welcomed that thought.

"Oh but you have wisdom. What you lack is compassion."

"Compassion?"

"Compassion. For each other. For every living organism. For your planet. You don't adapt to your environment at all. You create your environment by manipulating and controlling it. You don't work with nature – you work against nature. You create nothing but misery and pollution around you, infecting and destroying your planet. All of this because of your enormous greed to hold illimitable dominion over everything. It's only a matter of time before Zion will be heading the same road."

"It already does" Trinity lowered her voice. "Zion's alleged democracy is going down the drain."

"Well, just because you can see that you are spinning down the drain, doesn't mean that you can stop yourself from being flushed" he remarked.

"True."

Smith focused back on the road and let her digest this new information before he continued. "We want exactly the same thing you want: peace. I am tired of this war, Miss Edwards. I'm tired of being a zookeeper. I'm tired of this pointless fight that will never cease to exist" he paused. "Aren't you?"

She took her time before answering. These last twenty minutes have been surreal and her mind had trouble adjusting to all this new information. She knew that at this very moment, she might be betraying her race. But she followed her heart. "Yes... I'm tired as well, Smith."

Smith pulled over on a sideway and stopped the car, turning around in his seat and looked straight at her. She tensed, bracing herself for his next move. Slowly, Smith reached inside his jacked and produced a small key.

"Your hands, Miss Edwards."

Trinity didn't understand at first and due to her lack of action, Smith reached out and pulled both of her hands into his. His surprisingly warm fingers gently turned her palms up, as his key unlocked the handcuffs. She dared not to breathe, in case he would change his mind.

His thumb ran across her open palm and lingered just a moment longer than it was planned. Both of them, a human and a machine, looked at their connected hands and it seemed that the moment stretched into hours. She looked at his face and their eyes met in a new understanding.

A noise from the nearby car ended this moment and it was lost forever. Smith withdrew back to his seat.

"You are free to leave."

"What?"

"Your exit is the phone booth on 16th and Main. Two blocks from here."

"But..."

"I was given a new order – an order to return you home" Smith lied to her.

He opened his door and stepped out of the car. Trinity, still digesting this surreal moment, remained sitting on the back seat for a bit longer. Smith opened the door for her and she slowly stepped out of the Audi. He half expected her to break into run, but to his surprise, she remained standing. Her dirty training outfit was a strong contrast to the Agent's perfectly tailored suit and his sharp features that radiated nothing but power and authority.

"Why did you do it, Smith? Why save me and then release me?" she saw her reflection in his sunglasses.

"Because you are too good for them, Miss Edwards" he took a step closer, invading her personal space. "Because I've been watching you for the last nine years and every time I do, I know that you are made for something bigger that this. Because you've traded one prison for another. And because I want to give you a choice."

He paused to study her face.

"And I see that you already made your choice, Miss Edwards."

"What would I tell them back in Zion?"

"Nothing. They would never believe you anyway. To them I'm just another soulless machine."

Even trough the dark sunglasses, his expression was unreadable and she trembled ever so slightly, but stood her ground, when his right hand slowly brushed the strand of untamed hair away from her face, gently making contact her warm cheek. She held her breath. After lingering there, his fingertips traveled down, slightly brushing her bottom lip in the process and finally cupping her chin.

Surprise mixed fear and another, undefinable feeling washed over her as this Agent, this being who had the power to break her neck with his bare hands, gently explored her face. A small genuine smile appeared on Smith's features. It was not the metallic smile she used to see on other Agents. She slightly parted her lips.

"And now Miss Edwards, you must return to your home."

She blinked.

"Rest assured, next time I won't hesitate to kill you."

With these words, Smith withdrew himself from her and got back in the car. She was still standing on the sidewalk, as he started the engine. She was still standing on the sidewalk, as the black Audi disappeared into the morning traffic.

"I expect nothing less" she finally smiled and set off towards her exit on 16th and Main.


End file.
